A is for Aden and Z is for Zanzabar

A is for Aden and Z is for Zanzibar... Now what is between? For the world wide classical era philatelist and stamp collector, a country specific philatelic survey is offered by the blog author, Jim Jackson, with two albums: Big Blue, aka Scott International Part 1 (checklists available), and Deep Blue, aka William Steiner's Stamp Album Web PDF pages. In addition, "Bud" offers commentary and a look at his completely filled Big Blue. Interested? So into the Blues...

Saturday, January 3, 2015

Status of My Deep Blue & Big Blue Collections

1908 Austria Offices in Turkey 1 PiasterDeep Blue on Blue

Into the Deep Blue
There might be some curiosity among readers about the status of my collections. And so here is the country numbers for both Deep Blue (Steiner), and my virtual Big Blue (which is also housed in the Steiner).

For each country, the total number of (major number) stamps in the Scott
catalogue (Cat. Ct.), the filled spaces in Deep Blue (DB) (Steiner), the total spaces in Big Blue (BB),
and the filled spaces in Big Blue are presented.

For general, and specific comments (indicated
with an *), see the explanations below the statistical table.

Updated as of May 1, 2020 (This table will be updated from time to time)

Country……………/Cat. Ct./DB/Filled//Spaces/BB/Filled

Grand total…………./83,458/ 50,604 // 34,903/ 30,711

(61% filled Deep Blue/ 88% filled Big Blue)

United States………/0950*/DB/808//0627*/BB/0607

Total…………………../82,518/49,796//34,276/30,104

Aden-Ethiopia-BB-8379

Falkland Islands-Latvia-BB-6961

Lebanon- Quelimane-BB-7394

Reunion-Zululand-BB-7213

Aden…………………./100/DB/070/////019/BB/019

Afghanistan………../389/DB/058/////036/BB/020

Aguera…………….…/026/DB/011/////007/BB/004

Aitutaki..………...../031/DB/017/////022/BB/016

Alaouites…….……./073/DB/035/////030/BB/027

Albania………….…./403/DB/219/////113/BB/091

Alexandretta……./031/DB/009/////008/BB/008

Algeria……….……./191/DB/169/////115/BB/114

Allenstein….……./028/DB/028/////028/BB/028

Andorra…….……./149/DB/056/////038/BB/022

Angola…..….……./307/DB/286/////113/BB/112

Angra…….….……./035/DB/030/////007/BB/007

(Anjouan)….……./030/DB/004/////007/BB/004

(Annam & Tonkin)/006/DB/003/////000/BB/000

Antigua….….……./106/DB/059/////039/BB/036

Argentina….……./951/DB/585/////226/BB/226

Armenia….…..…./318/DB/105/////027/BB/027

Ascension….……./063/DB/032/////031/BB/022

Australia…………./335/DB/218/////090/BB/086

Austria*….….……./1226/DB/1012/////755/BB/749

Azerbaijan.….…./098/DB/049/////010/BB/010

Azores….….….…./0340/DB/0303/////176/BB/167

(Baden)….………./025/DB/021/////007/BB/005

Bahamas….……./132/DB/096/////052/BB/047

Bahrain….…..…./091/DB/053/////017/BB/014

Barbados………./245/DB/117/////057/BB/055

Barbuda……….../011/DB/002/////005/BB/002

Basutoland……./050/DB/035/////021/BB/019

Batum………..…./065/DB/022/////012/BB/012

Bavaria…………./361/DB/306/////289/BB/283

Bechuanaland./153/DB/060/////036/BB/032

Belgium………../971/DB/869////549/BB/534

Benin……………./049/DB/002/////007/BB/002

(Bergedorf)…../005/DB/005/////003/BB/003

Bermuda..……./147/DB/088/////060/BB/053

Bolivia……….…./361/DB/299/////164/BB/164

Bosnia & Herzegovina/193/DB/173//152/BB/152

Brazil……………./669/DB/576/////274/BB/273

British Central Africa/073/DB/016///007/BB/007

British East Africa/096/DB/015///008/BB/008

British Guiana./276/DB/083/////048/BB/045

British Honduras/155/DB/087////063/BB/057

British Solomon Islands/092/DB/038//034/BB/028

Brunei…………../057/DB/024/////024/BB/013

Bulgaria………../490/DB/404/////315/BB/301

(Bremen)………/016/DB/003/////003/BB/002

(Brunswick).…./025/DB/008/////006/BB/005

Burma……..…./140/DB/124/////026/BB/022

Cameroun……./355/DB/153/////117/BB/106

Canada…….../417/DB/342/////211/BB/211

Canal Zone..…./183/DB/122/////104/BB/086

Cape Juby….…./140/DB/048/////068/BB/037

Cape of Good Hope/068/DB/034///030/BB/027

Cape Verde…../287/DB/226/////121/BB/110

(Carinthia)*…../-----/DB/-----/////-----/BB/-----

Caroline Islands/023/DB/010/////007/BB/007

Castellorizo.…./085/DB/023/////020/BB/017

Cayman Islands/139/DB/072/////051/BB/039

Central Lithuania/053/DB/060/////043/BB/033

Ceylon……………/310/DB/146/////078/BB/075

Chad………………/085/DB/038/////059/BB/028

Chile………………/366/DB/292/////166/BB/166

China*……….…/909/DB/265/////214/BB/158

(China-Offices Abroad*)/?00/DB/?00//031/BB/000

(Cilicia)……….…/145/DB/084/////0016/BB/016

Cochin China…/005/DB/001/////004/BB/001

Colombia………/450/DB/273/////206/BB/184

(Colombia States)/414/DB/180///203*/BB/184

(Confederate States)/014/DB/006//006/BB/005

Congo, Belgian./266/DB/187/////138/BB/134

Cook Islands…./115/DB/032/////037/BB/015

Corfu………….…/014/DB/007/////006/BB/005

Costa Rica…..…/384/DB/201/////154/BB/153

Crete………….…/144/DB/060/////065/BB/048

Cuba………….…/462/DB/335/////234/BB/228

Cyprus…………/150/DB/086/////065/BB/062

Cyrenaica……/137/DB/050/////093/BB/036

Czechoslovakia*/620/DB/575///336/BB/331

Dahomey……/143/DB/105/////084/BB/083

(Dalmatia).…/014/DB/003/////005/BB/002

Danish West Indies/066/DB/041///037/BB/037

Danzig……..…/431/DB/334/////260/BB/258

Denmark……/399/DB/346/////206/BB/206

Diego Suarez/063/DB/003/////008/BB/003

Dominica……/112/DB/068/////048/BB/041

Dominican Republic/474/DB/322///222/BB/210

Dutch Indies./361/DB/262/////174/BB/163

East Africa & Uganda/071/DB/012///019/BB/012

(Eastern Rumelia)/040/DB/006////007/BB/005

(Eastern Silesia)/061/DB/056/////028/BB/028

Ecuador……/773/DB/405/////279/BB/277

Egypt………./390/DB/369/////198/BB/198

Elobey, Ann. & Cors./060/DB/014///007/BB/004

Epirus……../068/DB/025/////020/BB/018

Eritrea……./313/DB/196/////181/BB/148

Estonia……./197/DB/162/////114/BB/111

Ethiopia.…./323/DB/124/////078/BB/062

Falkland Islands/142/DB/074////037/BB/025

Far Eastern Republic/065/DB/014///008/BB/001

Fernando Po./176/DB/036/////023/BB/012

Fiji.…………../164/DB/061/////058/BB/036

Finland.…../281/DB/238/////160/BB/160

Fiume.……./262/DB/163/////070/BB/066

France*.…./1932/DB/896/////752/BB/600

French Colonies/080/DB/038///020/BB/019

French Congo/052/DB/017////018/BB/011

French Equatorial Africa/167/DB/090///063/BB/055

French Guiana/208/DB/135/////125/BB/110

French Guinea/212/DB/133/////139/BB/120

French India/141/DB/064/////084/BB/062

French Morocco*/300/DB/186///196- Listed in France/BB/147

French Polynesia/154/DB/100///104/BB/086

French Sudan/147/DB/074/////107/BB/065

Funchal.../034/DB/028/////014/BB/013

Gabon.…./183/DB/124/////111/BB/100

Gambia.../146/DB/077/////041/BB/036

Georgia.../036/DB/029/////028/BB/023

German East Africa/100/DB/042///033/BB/031

German New Guinea/023/DB/005///014/BB/004

German SW Africa/034/DB/014/////013/BB/011

Germany: North German Conf./035/DB/025//014/BB/014

Germany*../1101/DB/917/////765/BB/739

Gibraltar../135/DB/060/////040/BB/034

Gilbert & Ellice Is./065/DB/035////028/BB/022

Gold Coast../154/DB/080/////061/BB/054

Grand Comoro/029/DB/013/////017/BB/013

Great Britain/911/DB/423/////276/BB/206

Greece…..../812/DB/490/////281/BB/251

Greenland./020/DB/008/////007/BB/007

Grenada…./189/DB/070/////057/BB/044

(Griqualand West)/102/DB/003//000/BB/000

Guadeloupe/201/DB/124/////124/BB/110

Guam…..../014/DB/005/////005/BB/005

Guatemala/454/DB/366/////291/BB/285

Haiti…….../339/DB/214/////188/BB/180

(Hamburg)./022/DB/006/////007/BB/006

(Hanover)../025/DB/010/////007/BB/007

Hatay…...../050/DB/031/////013/BB/013

Hawaii….../091/DB/046/////033/BB/031

Hejaz (Saudi Arabia)*/453/DB/060//026/BB/018

(Heligoland)/026/DB/007/////007/BB/004

Honduras../579/DB/286/////211/BB/191

Hong Kong./214/DB/132/////075/BB/068

Horta…...../034/DB/021/////007/BB/007

Hungary*../1427/DB/1161////622/BB/622

Iceland….../327/DB/260/////161/BB/161

India*……./2958/DB/859/////244/BB/204

Indo-China/365/DB/227/////198/BB/167

Inhambane/101/DB/062/////037/BB/036

Inini……….../058/DB/047/////048/BB/039

(Ionian Islands)/003/DB/001////001/BB/001

Iraq……….../167/DB/061/////054/BB/036

Ireland…..../133/DB/105/////034/BB/034

Italian Colonies/087/DB/024////054/BB/021

Italian East Africa/054/DB/044///039/BB/033

Italy………../1554/DB/847/////617/BB/513

Ivory Coast/194/DB/104////128/BB/096

Jamaica….../170/DB/160/////078/BB/078

Japan………./388/DB/270/////230/BB/208

Jordan……../271/DB/051/////038/BB/013

Jugoslavia../583/DB/459/////340/BB/319

Karelia……../015/DB/015/////006/BB/006

Kenya Uganda/108/DB/056////050/BB/034

Kiauchau…./042/DB/008/////008/BB/007

Kionga……../004/DB/003/////004/BB/003

Korea…….../055/DB/015/////026/BB/014

Kuwait……../199/DB/009/////024/BB/004

Labuan……./135/DB/064/////059/BB/044

Lagos…….../059/DB/014/////014/BB/010

Latakia……./035/DB/014/////025/BB/013

Latvia…….../400/DB/259/////150/BB/136

Lebanon…./294/DB/088/////083/BB/055

Leeward islands/116/DB/053///044/BB/036

Liberia……../521/DB/446/////144/BB/140

Libya………../266/DB/139/////195/BB/109

Liechtenstein/249/DB/138////127/BB/102

Lithuania…/495/DB/283/////163/BB/128

Lourenco Marques/176/DB/124///046/BB/045

(Lubeck)…./014/DB/011/////005/BB/005

Luxembourg/582/DB/352////268/BB/239

Macao….…/372/DB/215/////148/BB/116

Madagascar/265/DB/150////144/BB/140

Madeira…./068/DB/037/////025/BB/020

Malaya*…/1314/DB/329/////257/BB/127

Maldives Is/030/DB/007/////013/BB/005

Malta……../263/DB/163/////069/BB/064

Manchukuo*/167/DB/100////079/BB/043

Mariana Is/027/DB/007/////013/BB/007

Marienwerder/042/DB/014////012/BB/006

Marshall Is/027/DB/013/////013/BB/011

Martinique./217/DB/166/////098/BB/088

Mauritania./145/DB/081/////081/BB/058

Mauritius…./261/DB/122/////081/BB/069

Mayotte…../031/DB/010/////016/BB/010

(Meckln. Schwerin)/008/DB/001///002/BB/001

(Meckln. Strelitz)/006/DB/002////003/BB/000

Memel……../237/DB/171/////051/BB/044

Mesopotamia/075/DB/014////009/BB/007

Mexico……../1299/DB/859/////369/BB/363

Middle Congo/123/DB/050/////097/BB/044

(Modena)…./019/DB/002/////005/BB/001

Moheli……../021/DB/007/////008/BB/006

Monaco….../272/DB/161/////143/BB/118

Mongolia…./057/DB/015/////021/BB/011

Montenegro/145/DB/110/////115/BB/102

Montserrat./130/DB/045/////043/BB/024

Mozambique/430/DB/328////137/BB/132

Mozambique Co./275/DB/216///122/BB/116

Natal………./132/DB/033/////025/BB/022

Nauru……./038/DB/030/////022/BB/022

Nepal……../043/DB/025/////014/BB/014

Netherlands/506/DB/443/////307/BB/302

Neth. Antilles/187/DB/094////073/BB/068

Nevis……../033/DB/004/////004/BB/002

New Brunswick/011/DB/007////006/BB/006

New Caledonia/266/DB/108////125/BB/081

Newfoundland/285/DB/256/////153/BB/151

New Guinea/140/DB/029/////068/BB/026

New Hebrides/164/DB/057/////047/BB/025

New South Wales/198/DB/039///052/BB/028

New Zealand*/505/DB/351/////147/BB/137

Nicaragua/1715/DB/1075////569/BB/516

Niger……../120/DB/077/////102/BB/076

Niger Coast Prot/064/DB/012////006/BB/005

Nigeria…../075/DB/058/////038/BB/035

Niue…….../103/DB/027/////030/BB/015

North Borneo/409/DB/136////127/BB/089

North Ingermanland/014/DB/011///009/BB/008

North West Pacific Is/149/DB/013///007/BB/005

Northern Nigeria/051/DB/027////019/BB/019

Northern Rhodesia/057/DB/043////033/BB/028

Norway..../290/DB/272/////183/BB/180

Nossi Be…/057/DB/007/////007/BB/003

Nova Scotia/013/DB/007/////005/BB/005

Nyasaland Prot./103/DB/054///036/BB/026

Nyassa……/141/DB/092/////085/BB/071

Obock……./083/DB/010/////012/BB/003

(Oldenburg)/024/DB/005/////003/BB/003

Oltre Giuba/066/DB/046/////035/BB/035

Orange R. Colony/077/DB/053////031/BB/026

Pakistan*…/032/DB/023//////000/BB/000

Palestine.../093/DB/049/////061/BB/038

Panama..../383/DB/213/////152/BB/146

Papua......./126/DB/060/////065/BB/046

Paraguay../584/DB/508/////357/BB/357

(Parma)..../015/DB/002/////002/BB/000

Penrhyn Island/030/DB/013///019/BB/010

Persia......./784/DB/476/////412/BB/387

Peru………./629/DB/388////314/BB/309

Philippine Is/564/DB/496////217/BB/217

Poland....../683/DB/530/////355/BB/344

Ponta Delgada/034/DB/030///016/BB/016

Portugal..../1031/DB/556////465/BB/411

Port. Africa/011/DB/011/////005/BB/005

Port. Congo/137/DB/123/////035/BB/034

Port. Guinea/309/DB/237////146/BB/129

Port. India../501/DB/210/////155/BB/133

Prince Edward Is/016/DB/013///009/BB/009

Prussia*...../026/DB/018/////006/BB/005

Puerto Rico/195/DB/132////121/BB/107

Queensland/164/DB/053////034/BB/023

Quelimane./040/DB/039/////020/BB/020

Reunion..../217/DB/137/////135/BB/121

Rhodesia../143/DB/053/////053/BB/039

Rio de Oro/149/DB/043/////024/BB/013

(Romagna)/009/DB/003/////003/BB/002

Romania.../931/DB/770/////530/BB/513

Roman States/025/DB/018////006/BB/006

Rouad....../016/DB/006/////008/BB/006

Ruanda-Urundi/071/DB/048////031/BB/026

Russia….../1415/DB/827////617/BB/564

Saar…….../237/DB/224/////133/BB/132

St. Christopher/029/DB/007////005/BB/004

St. Helena./143/DB/078/////045/BB/045

St. Kitts-Nevis/111/DB/062////043/BB/038

St. Lucia..../167/DB/078/////056/BB/049

St. Pierre & Miquelon/260/DB/149//162/BB/129

St. Thomas & Prince Is/423/DB/263///140/BB/132

St. Vincent../191/DB/090/////044/BB/038

Ste. Marie de Madag./013/DB/003///006/BB/003

Salvador..../1166/DB/809////582/BB/560

Samoa…..../173/DB/103/////070/BB/063

San Marino/345/DB/146/////146/BB/113

Sarawak…../215/DB/091/////050/BB/032

Sardinia….../017/DB/006/////007/BB/006

(Saseno)…../008/DB/004/////006/BB/003

Saudi Arabia*/----/DB/-----////-----/BB/00*

Saxony…..../020/DB/012/////008/BB/007

Schleswig../042/DB/024/////021/BB/021

(Schleswig-Holstein*)/025/DB/014///000/BB/00

Senegal…../250/DB/140/////165/BB/129

Senegambia & Niger/013/DB/004///008/BB/004

Serbia…..../224/DB/128/////104/BB/099

Seychelles/175/DB/065/////066/BB/036

Shanghai../183/DB/017/////031/BB/016

(Siberia)…../070/DB/007/////006*/BB/003

Sierra Leone/194/DB/063////059/BB/047

Somalia…../355/DB/118/////156/BB/086

Somali Coast/210/DB/130/////130/BB/104

Somaliland Prot./142/DB/040///030/BB/018

South Africa /237/DB/186////084/BB/048

South Australia/243/DB/037////032/BB/019

Southern Nigeria/056/DB/027///014/BB/014

Southern Rhodesia/078/DB/074///051/BB/044

South Russia/055/DB/020////010/BB/009

South West Africa/217/DB/089////103/BB/046

Spain…….../1171/DB/703////567/BB/499

Spanish Guinea/319/DB/113////104/BB/067

Spanish Morocco/251/DB/109////134/BB/095

Spanish Sahara/047/DB/047/////043/BB/043

Straits Settlements /310/DB/132////092/BB/086

Sudan…..../180/DB/141/////061/BB/061

Surinam…./243/DB/151/////155/BB/133

Swaziland./055/DB/034/////024/BB/019

Sweden…../426/DB/366/////211/BB/211

Switzerland/637/DB/430/////321/BB/314

Syria……..../524/DB/230/////141/BB/117

Tahiti……../065/DB/007/////003/BB/003

Tanganyika/044/DB/018/////020/BB/016

Tannu Tuva/141/DB/093/////020/BB/019

Tasmania…/123*/DB/044////027/BB/ 024

Tete……….../040/DB/036/////021/BB/ 020

Thailand (Siam)/286/DB/108////118/BB/ 085

Thrace……../135/DB/048/////022/BB/ 018

Thurn and Taxis/054/DB/037///015/BB/015

Tibet……..../018/DB/008/////010/BB/ 008

Timor…….../296/DB/127/////143/BB/ 088

Tobago….../031/DB/011/////005/BB/ 004

Togo……..../226/DB/080/////109/BB/ 067

Tonga……../109/DB/033/////027/BB/ 012

Transcaucasian F.R./031/DB/017///004/BB/ 004

Transvaal../293/DB/070/////052/BB/ 044

Trinidad…./134/DB/026/////026/BB/ 019

Trinidad & Tobago/108/DB/079///038/BB/ 037

Tripolitania/154/DB/074/////119/BB/ 062

Tunisia……./336/DB/230/////151/BB/ 133

Turkey….../1303/DB/806////394/BB/ 372

Turkey in Asia/108/DB/027////012/BB/ 012

Turks Islands/058/DB/005/////007/BB/ 004

Turks & Caico Is./130/DB/129////051/BB/ 051

(Tuscany)../024/DB/004/////002/BB/ 000

(Two Sicilies)/027/DB/003/////006/BB/ 002

Ubangi….../109/DB/031/////079/BB/ 029

Uganda…../076/DB/005/////010/BB/ 004

Ukrainia…./111/DB/047/////030/BB/ 030

Upper Senegal & Niger/050/DB/020//040/BB/ 020

Upper Silesia/090/DB/054/////036/BB/ 032

Upper Volta/089/DB/028/////075/BB/ 028

Uruguay…../843/DB/574/////298/BB/ 266

Vatican City/109/DB/099/////091/BB/ 089

Venezuela../511/DB/415/////251/BB/ 251

Victoria……./260/DB/107/////060/BB/ 053

Virgin Islands/113/DB/050////046/BB/ 030

Wallis & Futuna Is./119/DB/053///104/BB/ 052

Western Australia/104/DB/053/////027/BB/ 023

Western Ukrainia./119/DB/012/////019/BB/ 009

(White Russia)*/000/DB/010/////010/BB/ 010

Wurttemberg../251/DB/195/////180/BB/168

Yemen…….../040/DB/026/////009/BB/ 004

Zambezia…./105/DB/048/////037/BB/ 029

Zanzibar…../238/DB/065/////066/BB/ 043

Zululand…../024/DB/005/////014/BB/ 005

Comments and Explanations……

Total catalogue count

All major number stamps in the Scott Classic Specialized 1840-1940 catalogue are counted, (with some exceptions - see below), and covers World Wide 1840-1940+, and British Commonwealth countries 1840-1952. (“Cat. Ct.”)

(“Cat. Ct.”) will be somewhat less than
actual Scott Classic Specialized catalogue major number count. I excluded
specific categories (U.S. cut squares, Canada Air Post Semi-Official stamps, French Parcel Post, Australian
States Postal-Fiscal, Russia Postal-Fiscal etc) in which I had no interest.

I did not count any of
the Great Britain stamps identified with an obliterator (Scott “A” prefix) that
can be found for the British colonies prior to that colony’s first stamp issue.
Some smaller “entire” countries are missing (British Columbia, New Britain, Oman, Stellaland etc ) that are expensive, or have never been included in the Big
Blue album countries.

I did count spaces in Steiner rather than major numbers for
Austria for total Austria count (update- Sept, 2015)

OTOH, the count is inflated if one is comparing strictly
1840-1940 issues. The British Commonwealth countries are covered to the end of the
George VI era (1952), and some country’s definitive issues continue into the
1940s. Basically, if the stamp is in the Scott Classic Specialized catalogue-
even if issued after 1940- I included it.

A word about the numbers.. ..I combed through each page of
the 2011 Scott Classic Specialized, noting catalogue numbers missing
(decreasing the count), and noting suffix major numbers (i.e. “35A”- increasing
the count). No minor numbers (whether bolded or not) were counted. Of course, a
one time count of a country will have errors around the edges.

I think comparing between catalogues and their “numbers” is
useless (except in a most general way)- as there are too many variables between
catalogues.

A comment: For the WW classical era collector, one needs to
take the total number of stamps “available” very lightly indeed. I include the
total number of stamps for a country, so one has a general idea. I do not focus
on that number as a “goal”.

Deep Blue (Steiner) spaces filled

I enjoy having a
designated space for every Scott major number stamp I have. My collection- some
39,000+ classical era stamps at the time of the blog post (January, 2015)- is housed in 44 binders (1 ½”),
and some 6,500 70 lb acid free pages.

Thank you Bill Steiner!

Steiner usually follows the current Scott catalogue
with layout and presentation. But with
certain countries, he might offer spaces, (no doubt influenced by that
country’s collectors, and perhaps, a “rival” catalogue), that, in Scott, are
minor numbers. If Steiner offers a space, I count it.

Total Big Blue (BB) spaces

First, I need to
acknowledge Joe Lill, who independently counted all the spaces in his ‘97
edition BB, and sent the results to me. Although I also count the spaces, he
has been more accurate. Thanks Joe!

If you would like an Excel file of Joe’s list, he has
graciously placed it here…..

And that brings me to a specific goal- how complete can I get a
virtual Big Blue?.... Yes, difficult, and most challenging, but possible. As many are aware, I have been compiling a “checklist” of stamps that can be put into a BB space. With that, I can compare the checklist to my current collection- which yields a “want list” for the missing stamps that could fill a BB country. The
advantage is the stamps tend to be modest in cost, and I will eventually have a
“representative” collection for that country.

This is a “virtual” BB, so, besides the stamp spaces found
in the ‘69/’97 editions (identical in content- almost), I've added back a
number of smaller country stamp spaces – designated with a ( ) around the country- from the earlier
1940s BB editions that was removed by the ’69 editors.

Filled spaces in Big Blue (BB)

If I was putting
my stamps directly into BB, a simple glance would let me know my status for a
country or page. So keeping track of filled spaces- and a want list- is,
admittedly, more difficult with a virtual BB. But the advantages are I can have my cake, and eat it too. ;-) I have a "virtual" Big Blue housed within Steiner pages that includes all the additional stamps not found in BB.

Note: When all the spaces in BB for a country are filled, I note that by underlining the number count.

*Austria (Sept 2015 update)- count includes
Lombardy-Venetia. Total count is based on number of spaces in Steiner (some
minor numbers)- while “old” number (917) was based on major numbers. There are
still minor numbers, though, that do not
have a space in Steiner.

* Carinthia- 15 Austria stamps- found in the 40s editions under "Carinthia"- were transferred to Austria in the '69 edition.

* China- total count includes the Provinces (Offices abroad) category. Of interest, the "classic" Steiner files do not include the Provinces pages- these need to be taken out of the World Wide Steiner files.

* Germany- Does not include North German Confederation, or
Turn and Taxis

* India- BB has 244 spaces, but also a “Convention State”
blank page, where an additional ~42
Convention States stamps could be put in (mix and match). The page for
Convention States was not added to the cited 244 space total.

* Malaya- was listed under Straits Settlements in the 1940s editions.

* Manchukuo- Steiner includes all the 1940s era issues.

* Pakistan- the 1947-49 regular/official “Pakistan” OP on
British India (George VI issues) are included in the Scott Classic 1840-1940
catalogue. There are spaces in Deep Blue (Steiner) for them also. Pakistan,
including the 1947-49 OP British India issues, is found in Part II (1840-49+)
of the Scott Internationals.

* Prussia- Besides the 6 Prussian spaces, there are 7 spaces
for local (Prussia) Official stamps of 1903. These Official stamps are located
under the German section.

* United States 723 ( with cut squares) total in BB rather than 729- the 6 stamps
for the Confederate States is listed separately.

. I've actually removed the cut squares from BB (count 79)- I’m not
interested- so my own “count” for U.S. BB is 644. And I removed the cut squares
(count 550) from the U.S. Steiner count, which leaves 950 spaces.

39 comments:

Yes, I was wondering exactly that. From time to time I'd take a look at the number and quality/relative rarity of the stamps you used to illustrate each country and drew some ballpark conclusions about the extent of your collection. But this lays it all out, straight up and clearly.

We are all in your debt and wish you well.

Oh, by the way, where do you go from here? Yes, we eagerly await the remaining country summaries, but where do you, as a collector, go from here? More of the same? Or some new twist? Or rest on your laurels? Enquiring minds wish to know.

For the coming year I will continue to collect the classic world, with emphasis on the stamps in BB. At some point, I might favor some particular countries or areas, but frankly it is too hard to choose at the moment. ;-)

39.6K out of 83.3K is really impressive. Just curious when you started back up collecting did you have to start from scratch or did you have a base from your earlier collecting phase that you could build upon? DJCMHOH.

Jim,Very impressive! Given the large number of binders required for such a large collection in Steiner pages, I'm curious as to how you label your binders so you can keep track of and/or find what you are looking for? If you are someone who prints out the pages as needed, then the specific countries in any particular binder is a moving target, right?

The counties in a particular binder is not a moving target because I essentially printed out all the pages in Steiner's Classic set- all some 6,500 of them. ;-)

Started printing Aden, and, as it took about two years, finished with Zululand.

So the binders naturally filled up, although some have more pages than others.

As far as labeling the spine, I have tried putting two (not needed) stamps there- the first country and the last country in the binder. A glance tells me then which countries are in a binder, as all countries are in order by alphabet.

Thanks Jim, that's an interesting idea about using the stamps to label the spine. There was a post on one of the discussion groups from someone who did a similar thing by printing out a stamp image and sliding it into the holder in the binder's spine to identify what's in the binder.

I might think about doing this too, but I'm not inclined to print out all the Steiner pages at once, rather going the route of only printing out what I need at the time.

Given the fact that going this route, the countries in each binder will be a moving target for me, I had once thought I’d just number each binder sequentially. Interestingly, I saw somewhere online that the “Red Albums” of George V were housed in 328 volumes, which were just labeled with “Stamps” and numbered 1-328.

Chris- printing out as you go should work. True, you may have to shift pages to new or different binders as you continue to print out, but that is a trivial issue. You may have to temporarily label the spine with the countries you have in the binder at the moment.

Jim- I took another tip from you and before I got too 'deep' into the Deep Blues, switched my paper from the Staples 67lb cover stock to 60lb paper. Wow, what a difference! I just started printing out a couple of countries now using "Cougar SMOOTH Text - NATURAL - 8.5 x 11 Paper - 24/60lb Text"

A stack of 500 sheets of this stuff was about the same height as a stack of 250 sheets of the cover stock I was using previously, thus it should require half the number of binders and the price was more than 3x cheaper!

Thanks for giving me the idea, the cover stock never felt right to me, was just to stiff, but now this paper feels more like the newer Scott International pages or because the pages are smooth, they kind of have a feel similar to the Palo album pages.

I have a HP Officejet 4500 3 in 1 printer that is a bit long in tooth. I actually don't know how often I replaced the ink cartridges- I probably should have kept track. But not often enough so it raised alarm bells. Sorry I can't be more specific.

Ok, thanks Jim.I think one of my issues may be that I modified my pages by adding a "fancy" boarder and increasing the font size and bolding the country name on each page. Maybe I will unbold the country names, which may help a bit.

@Chris... Actually this is pretty easy to check and calculate. Just about all printer makers specify the average ink consumption for their models. For example Epson website tells that for WF-3450 the averages are:

Jim: I have another off the wall question for you. Have you done the analysis (or have a sense of) to see how or if the BigBlue coverage varies over the years (1840-1940)? In other words, is the coverage worst for the 19th Century stamps as compared to the later years (1930s)? Or perhaps the other way round?

My thinking is that if this is the case, one could (initially anyway) supplement their BB with one volume of the Brown’s and have a nice WW classic album with “moderate” coverage, but still be in the 5-6 binder range.

Hi Jim,First, thanks very much for all your work. Very interesting and educational.I don't understand what you mean by a "virtual" BB collection housed in/with Steiner pages. Do you mean you supplement Big Blue with Steiner pages? If so, is that your actual, physical storage of stamps? Thanks.Corbin

Got it! Thanks. Been reading different parts of the blog and can't seem to tear myself away. Great stuff! I really value your insight on the Scott and Steiner comparisons. As with every hobby, one must choose his/her own path. I think "collecting to the album" is where I'm heading.

At present, I'm definitely "collecting to the album", that is the checklist. Collecting the world- even if it is just the classical time slice- is like swallowing all the water in the ocean. By "collecting to the album", one only has to swallow a lake. ;-)

Jim,I hit the 10,000 mark today! 30% complete, too. I started by collating my original Junior into the 1997 version, as you know, and finished that move in May 2012 with 6841 spaces filled. Collated in two more Junior albums (affectionately known as Juniors 1 & 2), finishing that in July 2015 with a total of 9584. Halfway through Junior 3 I've hit the 10,000 mark, and Juniors 4 & 5 are sitting on deck upstairs. Thanks again for all your help!

I've browsed many of your past postings, searched the countries of my interest, and notice you do not have the small Suez Canal Company issues listed.

Could be due to the fact that they too were a highly forged group. I acquired one in an old time collection at auction some years ago. References are non-existent from what I've found, only private studies. From those I found my lucky find was a forgery.

The only printed reference to the issues I found was in a 1938 Stanley Gibbons Stamps of the Word catalogue. The section was deleted from Gibbons catalogues a year or so later as the section is not in my 1946 catalogue.

Just a thought for a future entry and perhaps a challenge for you too.

Actually, you will find the Suez Canal Company issue of 1868 under the Local Stamps section in Egypt with Scott numbers L1-L4 in my Scott 1840-1940 catalogue. The catalogue value for genuine is $35-$275. As you said, though, there are plenty of forgeries. Perhaps for a future post?

Jim,No need to post this. I went through all the totals from this list to cross-check mine. Most of the difference between your total and mine is that you include the totals from the '69 that aren't in the '97.There are some errors, though, all of which you corrected on the country pages. All these comments pertain to this Status List.Bremen is listed twice.French Polynesia should be 104 per your page (PYP).Germany should be 765 PYP.Hungary should be 622 PYP.Yugoslavia should be 340 PYP.Libya should be 195 PYP.Manchukuo should be 79 PYP.Rio de Oro: check your spelling.Trinidad & Tobago should be 38 PYP.All your other numbers match what I have. I can't speak to your total number for your '69 Big Blue, as the '97 is definitely different for certain countries. The 17 stamps on my Saudi Arabia page, for example. I did cannibalize the Colombian States pages from an older Big Blue, but I don't count them in my total. Glad to have the pages, though!Joe

It is all a bit relative though, as objectively I've slowed down. In years past, I might increase the total by 500 stamps or more in a single month. Now I struggle to find 100 new stamps for a month. All the low hanging, and even the middle hanging fruit has already been found. ;-)

I hit 40% on November 14, 2017! Every time I go through and collate another album into mine I find a place where I cut a corner in the past (almost always watermark-related) and need to check every stamp in that area. Getting cleaner all the time, though!